


the crown

by cockcrow



Series: english class poetry [2]
Category: Macbeth - Shakespeare
Genre: Poetry
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-04
Updated: 2018-02-04
Packaged: 2019-03-13 19:46:59
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,124
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13577715
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cockcrow/pseuds/cockcrow
Summary: ... there is no life inthe garden; the apple has poisoned thegrounds. murder and treason, the seeds, and bloodand sacrilege, the fruits. the king is dead.





	the crown

**Author's Note:**

> the generic kinds of poems

_"the crown"_

 

  **iv. the emperor, Duncan**

_i._

old, wise, and a man of integrity.

honour above all. he holds his head high,

bold eyes for bold war. a being of god's

reflection. he is the golden temple.

waterfalls cascade velvet. in our king,

we hold our arms high, blade soaring through the

battlefield. may the enemies fall, for

the heavens are in our favour tonight.

the traitors of our king will fall. pray, soon.

 

_ii._

in this man, there is victory, honour,

trust, and a cause. a king will lead his men,

army, with wisdom and valour, that is,

a king will persevere, and restore the

delicate balance of the world. a taut

line will snap eventually, that is,

checkmate. sound the horns. victory has fell

upon us: the people; the king; scotland.

tomorrow, and tomorrow, light shines here.

 

_iii._

long live the king. in a night this foul, there

falls an eerie, dark cloak of misfortune.

earth shakes. the obscure bird does fly. there is

confusion, chaos in the air, and the

stars, charged by hope, are dimmed. the lord’s temple

has burnt to ashes. there is no life in

the garden; the apple has poisoned the

grounds. murder and treason, the seeds, and blood

and sacrilege, the fruits. the king is dead.

 

     ‑ _“There’s no art_

_To find the mind’s construction in the face"_

_  
_

 

  **xiii. death, Fleance**

 

_i._

a father’s beloved son, meant for greatness,

meant for kingship. but, Banquo heeds none of

it. and then, three murderers come from the

shadows with blades in hands, and a glint in

their eyes. suddenly, he is the boy who

lived, he is the runaway prince. fly child,

as his father's slain, he's got to live. the

panicked horse gallops, making haste, leaving

scotland. one day, he’ll come back for revenge.

 

 

  **xviii. the moon, Ross**

 

_i._

Ross, the loyal messenger as always,

makes way to deliver the news: Macbeth,

is thane of cawdor. he knows that Macbeth

has done much, but what of him? he wants his

land, his deserved reward. And when Macbeth

is king, he doesn’t disobey. he does

all that he asks, and when the time comes, he

gets nothing. then, Ross leaves. the time for an

uprising is here. and, he will join them.

 

 

  **o. the fool, Macbeth**

 

_i._

ambition. there is a name underneath

Macbeth. something called bravery, something

called ruthlessness, called strength, called ambition.

there are many forms, faces beneath him,

uncoiling and brandishing, until the

battle’s done. bleeding out scotland’s disease.

settling in the war's finality,

he grins at the sun. for he fights for the

king, he fights for victory. the war’s won.

 

_ii._

a dagger lies before him: in his palms;

and in his eyes. it points to where he must

go, to where he will become king. he grabs

the dagger and strikes. a temple crumbles.

there is no warrior’s cry, no handshake.

an owl cries. god weeps for the injustice.

and, at his coronation, he stands tall,

but weathered. gone are the sons: Malcolm and

Donalbain. conflicted, Macbeth is king.

 

_iii._

in the final moments of his ruling,

he finds his calm. Seyton! he calls. Lady

Macbeth may have chosen the coward’s way

out, but he shall stand and suffer. if the

doctor could purge the land of its illness,

then he would laugh, spit in his face, and pass

his blade to him. with weary hands, Macbeth

grasps his sword, and faces Macduff. in his

last moments, he damns the Witches. enough.

 

     – _“Tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow”_

_  
_

 

  **iii. the empress, Lady Macbeth**

 

 

_i._

news of cawdor, and Lady Macbeth is

enthused. when Macbeth mentions king, she grins,

but it falls. she worries for the kindness

settled in his heart. weak, much too weak for

a king. they must be ambitious, and do

all they can. when Macbeth comes back from that

room, she knows. all too easy. she thinks. ‘til,

she grows weary, weighted from her dreams. she

sees visions, and needs to make them stop. stop.

 

 

  **xv.** **the devil, Witches**

 

_i._

fair is foul, and foul is fair. the Witches

chant as desert sand cloaks the air. and, the

thunder crackles, sky flickers, lighting strikes.

they meet with Macbeth, and slither in like

snakes, spewing venom. soon, Macbeth is caught

in their festering language, breathing in

their lies as truths. double, double, toil and

trouble. the new king of scotland curses

the Witches. they cackle. there’s no god here.

 

**vii. the chariot, Malcolm**

 

_i._

next in line, he will become king. once his

father leaves, scotland will look toward him

for leadership, for command, for strength. he

must become the anchor, the vessel, the

sea. he must become the sun. it is a

heavy weight for the crown. he cheers at the

party, but he worries for Donalbain.

what of him? he thinks. but, he already

understands. a throne can fit only one.

 

_ii._

his father has been slain, murdered. someone

has betrayed the land, and let in the hounds.

uncertainty is in the air, and he

whispers to Donalbain to leave, during

the night, to england, to ireland. he is

sorry to the people, the mass, but he

must survive. the crown, throne will go to the

traitor, but he has plans. scotland, watch out.

Malcolm will come back with a storm, the sun.

 

_iii._

cut down birnam woods, hide the numbers. they

are coming, Macbeth. he will take back his

father’s land and set the seeds down, letting

scotland recover, grow, and prosper. In

this battle, Malcolm knows what must happen.

Macbeth will be struck down, and a new king

will take place. although, it’ll be rough, he will

bring scotland to its former glory. for

his father, for the people, Malcolm comes.

 

     ‑ _“Be this the whetstone of your sword: let grief_

_Convert to anger; blunt not the heart, enrage it”_

 

 

  **xi. justice, Macduff**

 

he does not trust Macbeth, there is something

beneath his words, face. the king is dead, but

there’s an odd look in his eye. he doesn’t go

to Macbeth’s coronation, but, rather,

to england, there’s business to be done. Ross

spills the news. his family will never

forgive him. he joins Malcolm. first, birnam

woods. then, towards dunsinane. there, change is

happening. neither side says, “hold, enough.”   **  
**

 

 

  **x. wheel of fortune, Donalbain**

 ****

_i._

Donalbain is not the first choice: not by

age; not by physique; not by charisma.

he is the second son, in the shadows,

and meant for advising, not ruling. and

it seems, he will never get the chance. he

escapes to ireland. he won’t be killed, not

for the crown, not when the throne was never

for him. and when it’s over, he returns,

but not bitter. he walks on his own path.

 

 

 

 


End file.
